The excitement of a rarity chase is one of my favorite aspects of birding, but it’s nothing compared to the thrill of finding something unusual yourself. For me, the feeling of accomplishment that comes with turning up even a minor regional oddity often rivals the triumphant joy of a successful twitch or long-distance trip. That finder’s high is a hell … Read More
Weekend Digiscoping Spotlight 18
The Weekend Digiscoping Spotlight will highlight some of the fun shots we’ve gotten recently with a camera paired with a spotting scope or binoculars. We welcome submissions of your favorite digiscoped shots to be featured in future spotlights, just use the contact form in the menu above. I have mainly been working in densely forested habitat in northern Idaho since May, … Read More
An evening in Ocala National Forest: Common Nighthawk flight display
Yesterday, as part of my work with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, I spent part of the day mapping territories of Florida Scrub-Jays in Ocala National Forest. I spent a few hours out in the morning, but high humidity and baking sun had the jays quiet by 11:00 or so. There is no standing water in the scrub, so … Read More
ABA Bird of the Year Multimedia Art Contest Announcement
Robert Mortensen has thrown together another one of his classic Bird of the Year videos to announce the Multimedia Art Contest for this year’s bird, the Common Nighthawk. Check it out below and get started on your entries!
Common Nighthawk Nest
[dc]W[/dc]hile roaming through the scrub a few days ago, my friend Aubrey and I flushed a Common Nighthawk off the ground. Â These birds are a fairly common sight in some areas of Ocala National Forest, especially in the early morning and evening hours. Â The nighthawk flew off, but unlike most other nighthawks I have flushed in the past, it came … Read More
A few scrub birds from the Juniper Prairie Wilderness Area
Anna and I have been spending quite a bit of our time working out at the Juniper Prairie Wilderness Area, searching for ‘Southeastern’ American Kestrel nests in natural cavities and also doing point counts of the birds that use this special area. Anna has already posted about this area once before, but I thought I would share a few photos … Read More
Answers to Forest Fest Mystery Bird Quiz
This past weekend, we celebrated Forest Fest at Penn State. At the festival, the avian outreach class had a table set up that talked about birding, demonstrated bird banding, and led a guided bird walk through the arboretum. We also had 10 photos, that I took, of 10 different species of birds for people to try and identify. Below are the photos … Read More
South Hills Census near Twin Falls, Idaho
Alex and I were able to use one of our days off this week to help on the fourth year of the South Hills Bird Census near Twin Falls, Idaho. The count is organized by the Prairie Falcon Audubon Society, and covers a large portion of the South Hills, a fairly unique ecosystem in south-central Idaho. Alex and I joined Cheryl … Read More
Common Nighthawk – Photo Study
The Common Nighthawk has always been one of my favorite birds, so on June 10th when Anna and I saw our first nighthawks of the year migrating over Mountain Home Reservoir here in Idaho, I was pretty excited. Since the 10th, Anna and I have seen or heard at least one nighthawk every day. Some days we have seen large … Read More
4 Day Birding Tour of Idaho
I have managed to turn many of my friends back home into crazy birders. My friend Mark Markiewicz is no exception; a few years ago Mark’s brother Chris and I began going out kayaking along the Swatara Creek, that runs through Hershey, PA, often and I would always point out any bird species we saw. It wasnt long till Mark … Read More